Friday, August 10, 2012

No room for lions

John 13:34-35“I give you a new command: Loveoneanother. Just as I have loved you, you must also love oneanother. By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” Keep that verse firmly in mind. Love one another. As we, beloved children of God, are loved. Loved enough to die for. Loved enough to bear our sins for. THAT much.But are we not warned, 1 Peter 5:8Be serious! Be alert! Your adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.But is he really? I think, rather, that he is sitting back watching us devour each other. He doesn't need to be roaring, he can whisper. He can lie. He can let us do his bidding through our misplaced rightness. Not righteousness. Rightness.Can you imagine if the body of Christ, His beloved Church, could stop for one day and love one another. Just one day. But we can't do it, can we?Or is that we won't?I'm more ________________ than you. My _______________is deeper than yours. You are a _______________and must be protested against, hated, fear mongered or shunned. I asked the question, simply, why we can't love one another as commanded. I was told in no uncertain terms I was judging people unfairly.. I misunderstood. I was wrong.There are wiser scholars out there, I'm sure who can debate this more theologically than I. And I don't wish to debate. I wish to challenge you, brothers and sisters in Christ. If we are, indeed, all part of the same body, why are we spending all of our time tearing it apart?Why aren't we making the devil work for his hate? Instead we do his work for him. We sow seeds of hate, we sow seeds of fear. We create disention and mistrust. We use the Bible to bludgeon people, to drive them away from God all the while screaming, "JESUS WHERE ARE YOU?"In a world of hate, Jesus is the homeless person being urinated upon outside a shopping mall. In a world of fear mongering, Jesus is the person who doesn't look like the 'rest' and is shunned. In a world of pain and violence, Jesus is the confused, the lost, the needy, the 'different' and the 'wrong'. Remember:

Matthew 25:39-41

Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and visit You?’

40 “And the King will answer them, ‘I assure you: Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’ 41 Then He will also say to those on the left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels!

The least of these. That gay couple you shouted at. That homeless man. That crack Mama who was a crack baby herself first. That drunk. That wife beater and the wife who can't leave. Those sk8ers and dropouts. THEM. US. EACH OTHER.

How can we proclaim the Good News with parentheses of hate? How can we invite people to drink from the well that quenches all thirsts with a screening gate by the courtyard? (Sorry - you can't come in. Nope you either. You look sorta okay, but what is your answer to the trick question?) How can we, redeemed by holy blood, presume to take God's place in judgement over one another?

When I asked the question, what about the greatest commandment that we love one another, I really was asking, "Is this the best we can do for our Saviour who died for all our sins?" The answer to me was, "GET OUT!" So I did. I shook the dust from my sandals and I left.

The devil has enough of his own helpers without us, don't you think? If we are doing the hating, the dissenting and the hurting he has more time to do harm to others. Why are we doing this?So you are gay. So you are fat. So you are Baptist. So you are a pacifist. So you are a soldier. So you are a criminal. So you are ___________. Did Jesus tell us to withhold love, compassion and good news from anyone? HE DID NOT! Not once have I found in the Bible where any personage of the Trinity says, "Ah nope no salvation for them, or them or them."

Instead, we are taught that God seeks reconciliation with all to Him in heaven. Heaven rejoices over lost sheep more than obedient flock followers. Why aren't we seeking His lost sheep to bring them home? Instead we chase them into the wilderness. How the devil must smile. How God must sorrow.I challenge you, brothers and sisters, to love. Yes just like Jesus did. Love past the dirt, the addictions, the choices. Love past your prejudices and pain. Love past denominational and regional differences. Love past the politics. How can we stand before God on judgement day and say we saved His love for only those we thought were worth it? He thought we were worth it. No one else would have thought that of me. Especially NOT me!Joshua 24:15 (KJV)And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

Note: I did not want to write about this, but God woke me up early and spoke very closely tom my heart. I believe the issues that separate us as Believers are mechanisms to keep God's children apart, and powerless. If we can get past them we can really show the world God's love in a living and dynamic way. But we have to stop using each other for cannon fodder, and we have to stop pulling the Body of Christ apart from the inside. There are enough devils who want a turn, why are we fighting each other instead of them? Can't we use what God has blessed us with to build His Kingdom? I think we can. But it can't be a Kingdom WE imagine, it must be HIS. I look forward to your thoughts, however I will invoke my right as blog owner to moderate comments and discussion as required.

4 comments:

What a beautiful and hard-hitting post. Thank you for your obedience. This is my hearts cry as well. It breaks my heart to see the hate that is committed in the name of "Christ." I will be sharing this post with my fans, as well.

I like the post. I'd wonder your definition of love. Is it a lack of offence? What about when love hurts or has to be tough? Many times true love is misunderstood even by the one being loved, does that mean it's not true love? Is real love always agreeing or is there room for me to love someone while passionately disagreeing with them? For me this post raises some good questions.

I completely agree, and it was Jesus' final prayer, that His people should be united in love. And we most certainly shouldn't be aiming our weapons at those on our team, in our army, in our family. I do wonder, though, how in our current cultural climate if love can always be communicated in such a way that it will always be received well. Which raises another set of questions!! Is it my responsibility to love so that it is received well, or is it more important to love like Christ did and that included offending some. And what should be the difference in how we love other believers as opposed to those who don't share our faith? Will that look different?

Just a few of my thoughts on this post. Thanks for taking the time to write it!

Carla Anne - you raise some great questions and thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. We are imperfect and as such will love imperfectly. I think my son is a good example to me of loving someone who doesn't even know him that well. He loves because Jesus taught him to love, and set the example. He does not require reciprocation nor does he need validation from everyone whom he loves as taught. Those who do love him back let him know, as best we can! When we love someone we set boundaries and we have relationship rules. Real love is showing the fruits of the spirit as best we can. We don't need to be hurting and hating each other, even if we can only love a bit or from a distance or even because of safety we need space. Love, for me, and as I read my Bible is that when we love we have no room for hate or intentional giving of hurt. If we loved as we wished to be loved, and were open about that expectation in our relationships we'd have many things come so much clearer. Having our love received well or at all is not, for me, as much an issue as my job to love. We love believers and non-believers in different ways, just as we love our close family different than others. The foundation is just as you said - love like Christ did. When we do that I believe the Holy Spirit will soften hearts and open minds in ways we'd never imagined.